After the clerk checks in the party, he gives a brief spiel about the layout of the motel, the menu and hours of the diner next door, and the Wi-Fi password written on the keycard holders. He then hands all the cards to Wendy for dispersal.
“Okay, Libby, here is your keycard for our room. Sully and Tiko, here are yours, Maddie and Sepulveda, Vito and Diego, and finally Tewow. And Tewow, thanks again for being the odd man out and housing the larger equipment in your room.”
Everyone collects their luggage from the vehicles and heads to the rooms. Though not requested, the clerk gave them two rooms on the upper floor and three on the bottom floor. Who was Wendy to argue with chivalry, so the men get the bottom floor and the women the room upstairs. The rooms are large enough to fit two queen sized beds, a table with two chairs, a small reclining chair, plus a dresser and small closet area next to the en suite bathroom. Each room also has a mini-fridge with a small microwave on top.
Many areas surrounding the forest have been affected with the recent events and the communities pooled their resources together to pay the expenses of Wendy and her companions. While it was the SWACon jet that flew to Pennsylvania, the fuel was paid for by the community committee. Because Wendy knows that the committee funds are limited, doubling up in motel rooms is the least her group can do. And apparently some community people will be providing casseroles and other food dishes over the next few days to cut down on the purchase of restaurant food. But that starts in the morning, for now, it’s Sunday evening and they’re hungry from traveling all day. Libby contacts Maddie while Wendy messages Sully.
Hey, bro. Want to round up the guys and we’ll head to the diner? Also, have you let whichever police contact know that we’ve arrived?
Yes, twin terror, I’ve contacted Deputy Peterson. He’ll be heading our way soon. And yes, we’re all starving and ready to go when you are.
Wendy and Sully are fraternal twins, obviously, though they look very similar. Both have dark chocolate skin, natural black hair, and hazel-green eyes. Both are also average height, Sully is a couple of inches under six feet, while Wendy is just a few inches over five feet. They also have similar mannerisms and occasionally communicate in twin speak or even only via facial expressions. Though the last is more due to being best friends while raised by their maternal grandmother in NOLA.
Libby nods when Wendy glances at her, indicating that Maddie and Sepulveda are chomping at the bit. Or Wendy may be projecting that part.
We’re on our way down now. See you in a minute.
Hopefully the diner food is decent, though Wendy’s sure that everyone’s too hungry for it to matter at this point.
CHAPTER TWO- Diego
Tiko, Sully, and Tewow are outside their doors when Diego and Vito join them in waiting for the women to come down the staircase.
“Sergeant, will it be just us at the diner, or will someone from the community committee be joining us?” Sepulveda asks Sully as the women descend the stairs and the group begins walking to the diner.
“Deputy Peterson will meet us in an hour, Sepulveda. Do you have your devices? We need to record the conversation.”
“Yes, Sarge. I have everything.”
“Good.”
Tiko and Libby arrive at the doors first, Tiko holds the outside door open for everyone while Libby mans the inside door. Sully walks up the stand with a sign asking them to wait to be seated. A waitress promptly arrives to get their party details.
“Hello. I just called ten minutes ago to arrange seating for a party of ten. Nine of us here now and the tenth will join us shortly. But we may be here for a couple of hours after we finish eating.”
“Yes, I’m the one you spoke to. Just redd up two tables for you. We placed them corner like instead of one long table. Do you want us to change it up?”
“No, ma’am, that sounds great. We’ll be able to speak to each other easily. Thank you.”
“Are you from the South?”
“Ma’am? Yes, from New Orleans.”
“Well, that’s alright then. Younz, follow me.”
Sully and Wendy follow the waitress while Diego and the others fall in behind them. They quickly sit around the tables as the waitress, Sarah, passes out the menus and takes the drink orders. Most order water and coffee, while both Maddie and Tewow ask for hot water for tea.
“Tiko, why’d she ask me if I was from the South?”
“Well, Sully, probably because you called her ma’am. Southerners tend to sir and ma’am everyone so it’s acceptable. But otherwise, around here, ma’am is taken more as a comment on a woman’s age.”
“Oops, forgot about that. I guess that’s what happens when most of my trips outside of SWACon are either to the Southern US, Mexico, or Canada. They either don’t care or are too polite to object. I need to do better since I’ll be interacting more with US Psycept cases from all over. Don’t want to offend anyone unless I mean to.”
“Well, if it’s any consolation, I remember being taught to call the police ‘Sir’ and ‘Ma’am’. You may not have as much pushback if you deal mostly with fellow police departments.”
“Maybe. Wendy, do you remember me saying anything like ‘ma’am’ last time we were here?”
“I don’t recall. Since it’s so common to us, it probably didn’t even register if you did. But if you want to call up the females that you interacted with to apologize, have at it.”
Sarah returns with the drinks then takes their food orders. The diner is a nice space, not too hemmed in. It has the requisite long counter with
